Limerick GAA clubs to vote on changes

THE first Limerick GAA County Board meeting of 2013 will be convened next Tuesday night.

THE first Limerick GAA County Board meeting of 2013 will be convened next Tuesday night.

Aside from the run of the mill items on the agenda, the club delegates will vote on a number of regulation changes as proposed ahead of last December’s Annual Convention.

While there are 17 regulations changes proposed, there will be three main decisions for the clubs - that the management of all inter-county teams pick their own captains, that the minor and U-21 A and B football and hurling championships be run on an all county basis and that there be no divisional teams in the 2013 county senior hurling championship.

All votes will be decided on a straight majority basis.

DIVISIONAL TEAM

LAST August, Emmets’ failure to start the county senior hurling championship game against Adare with a full compliment of 15-players appears to have signalled the death knell of the involvement of divisional teams in the Limerick SHC.

Within 24 hours of that debacle, three different clubs had submitted letters to the County Board expressing disappointment with the events surrounding the game.

Nonetheless Emmets did still progress in the championship and it was the fourth season that Emmets progressed to the knockout stages - 2011 (semi-final), 2010 (final) and 2009 (semi-final).

Prior to Emmets, both Western Gaels (2008) and Geraldines (2007) were also quarter-finalists.

It was a Hurling Review Committee set up in July 2004 that brought about the divisional involvement.

The six-man sub committee (Michael O’Sullivan, John Landers, Paddy Kelly, Michael Graham, Tony Roche and Liam Lenihan) brought the proposal to a Special County Board meeting in January 2006 and the divisional team appeared in the 2007 championship.

Now it appears most likely that the six year experiment will come to an end next Tuesday night.

Both Granagh-Ballingarry and Garryspillane have proposals submitted for next Tuesday that would return the Limerick SHC to a ‘club only’ competition.

It appears that Granagh-Ballingarry would be the big winners if the divisional team experiment ends as it is most likely that their relegation would be deemed void to ensure a 16-team championship for 2013.

INTER-COUNTY CAPTAIN

CROOM have submitted proposals to take away the honour of selecting the varying inter-county captains from the respective county champions.

The proposal would stretch to all Limerick teams in hurling and football.

This proposal has come before delegates in the last decade but was defeated.

Last weekend, Limerick senior hurling manager John Allen gave his backing to the move.

“I think its better that management pick the captain. I know its nice for the county champions to have the captain but all in all its better for the team that the captain is picked by the management,” said Allen after Limerick’s win over Mary Immaculate College last weekend.

ALL-COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP

THERE are four different proposals from Croom to take the running of the remaining minor and U-21 champions away from the divisions.

At present the Premier grade at minor and U-21 hurling and football is run on an all-county basis.

The regulation changes would see all remaining 15-a-side championships at this grade move to an all-county basis.

Elsewhere, Granagh-Ballingarry are seeking the establishment of a new Tommy Qauid Cup competition.

This would see the four divisional teams play a competition as part of a trial for county senior hurling team.

Claughaun are seeking a grading system to be introduced to the county intermediate hurling championship for 2013.

There is also a call from Blackrock for all U-21 championship games to be played on weekends.

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